Inertia
by Little Miss Illusional
Summary: (or The Five Times Archie and Atlanta Weren't on a Date Because That Would Have Consequences and the One Time They Grew Up and Acted Like Adults).


So, a while back I wrote Flutterings, which has a similar set up to this fic. I love the _five times X and the one time Y _idea. It's kind of like a series of interconnecting drabbles and what can I say, I like drabbles.

Again, sorry for not updating Series Three in a few weeks. I'm still working some storylines and characters out (because I really, really want to nail the OCs in the episodes), and university has been hectic. Still, you can probably expect an update in the coming weeks if everything goes according to plan. If you would like to be helpful, please vote in the new poll on my profile. I always love feedback from you guys.

Enjoy!

* * *

Inertia

_(Or The Five Times Archie and Atlanta Weren't On A Date Because That Would Have Consequences And The One Time They Grew Up And Acted Like Adults)_

* * *

Archie paced in front of Atlanta's bedroom door. He was sure that he'd worn footprints into the carpet. A poster for a visiting circus troupe was in one of his hands. A single, solitary question was in the other. The inertia of a hopeful romance in the making spanned the space between himself and the girl inside.

Tentatively, he knocked on the door. A few seconds later, Atlanta opened it.

"Hi," she said a little breathlessly. "What's up?"

He held out the poster dumbly. She skim read it, eyes lighting up. "The circus is in town? Awesome!"

"Do… do you want to go?" he asked.

"Sure!" Atlanta beamed. "Like, right now?"

"Um, okay…"

"Great!" She disappeared into her room, and reappeared a few seconds later with a wallet and her PMR. "Let's go!"

Archie was swept up by Atlanta as she ushered him to the stairs. Boundless energy poured from his companion. It was infectious. He was so caught up in her that he almost forgot the burning question that had led him to her door in the first place.

"It's not a date… is it?" he asked, hopefully.

"What?" Atlanta asked so suddenly, he almost tripped down the first step. "No! _No_, definitely _not_ a date! That would be awkward. And embarrassing."

"Yeah. _Awkward_." Archie echoed, blushing. "I mean, dating _you_? _Weird_." He blushed a little harder.

* * *

It's not like Atlanta planned it that way.

But when she quite literally _ran_ into Archie on her morning run, and after the usual greetings, an awkward silence commenced, because the last time she checked, Archie was an abrasive quasi-misogynist who didn't think she was capable of being a member of the team, and thought she was a bad tracker. Or something like that. She might have exaggerated it a bit to herself.

As Atlanta pondered the ways in which her friendship with the warrior were complicated, Archie said, in a very unsure tone, "we should, uh, hang out some time", and it was pretty weird, because they did hang out, all the time, because they were friends and lived together for Zeus' sake, and in the end, they parted ways on the sidewalk with a date for later that afternoon.

Only it wasn't a date, because dates were for people who liked each other. Romantically.

He knocked on her door with pizza and soda and quite a few movies, which was nice because it meant that she wouldn't have to make conversation with him until later that evening.

And, low and behold, it was only after they'd watched four movies and consumed all the pizza that Archie finally apologies for being a world-class, woman-hating man.

"I'm not all that good at apologies," he shrugged at the end of his little speech. "I guess I just suck as a friend."

"You don't suck," she told him. "And, well, you're pretty okay as a friend."

"Yeah?"

"You're still a dork, though."

They both smiled. At each other. And they both blushed, together. Atlanta could hear her heart beating, fluctuating. An empty pizza box and a mouthful of questions were scattered around her room._ Is this it? _she thought. _Is this what a date could be like?_

"This isn't a date," she said automatically, more to herself than to Archie.

Archie's smile faltered a little. They both saw it happen, and ignored it.

* * *

It was Herry's birthday, and Neil had been able to procure fake IDs, and for some unknown reason they had actually worked, or perhaps Theresa had something to do with the glass-eyed expressions each of the bouncers wore at each of the clubs that Neil insisted on. And, the more they thought about it, it'd been the same expression that Jay had worn when he agreed to the whole thing.

Somehow, well past midnight they ended up at Herry's favourite burger place just off the park, still a little drunk, which led to Archie and Atlanta bickering under the not-so-shocked eyes of the gang. They had previously agreed earlier in the week to call a truce for Herry's birthday, but of course, with alcohol coursing in their veins, it got a little hard to remember certain agreements.

No one seemed to care, anyway. Well, no one except Neil, but all he did was shrilly suggest they grow up, which they don't, and Archie promptly told him that he _is_ grown up because his ID said he was twenty-two. Jay also seemed a little uncomfortable, but that might have been because of Theresa's chosen outfit for the night; black heels, black dress, red lipstick.

"So, what's our plans for the summer?" Odie asked, in an attempt to get the attention away from the couples. "Hera's still funding our overseas travel, right?"

"I want to go to _New Yawk_," Neil announced, demonstrating his somewhat flawed grasp of accents. "Or _Pah-ree_. That's how the French pronounce Paris, by the way," he explained smugly.

"What about my farm?" Herry suggested, and then they were shouting suggestions all at once.

Archie and Atlanta weren't really paying attention to the proceedings. Atlanta was too busy lecturing Archie on how cafés were destroying the rainforests in Brazil, and Archie was too busy noticing how her hair framed her face, and how her hazel eyes were brighter that night and how her smile was a thousand times more beautiful. His heart turned and twisted in his chest, and he had freaking butterflies in his stomach, and he really wanted to kiss her.

But at the same time, he was frightened. Atlanta had that effect on most people, he was assured. But he wasn't frightened for himself physically. He figured he could take on anyone of the team (except perhaps Theresa, because he was as sure as Hades she could take over any one of their minds and win in an instant). Emotionally, he knew that Atlanta could destroy him. He wasn't the type of guy to (and he hated the word) _love_. There hadn't been a whole lot of people that stuck around in his life, and he'd gotten by before simply through ignoring any feelings he had towards people.

Maybe it was his inebriated state or maybe he just didn't feel like ignoring his feelings anymore, so he just looked her in the eye and blurted out the first thing that popped into his mind.

"Would you like to go out with me? Right now? On a date?"

She looked at him like he'd just turned into a satyr and he finally realised what he'd just said.

"I mean," he started, only to be cut off by Atlanta's laughter.

"You're drunk!" she said, when she finally stopped laughing.

He smiled uneasily at her. "I know, right?"

No one would ever know he actually meant what he said. And if they did, he'd blame it on the alcohol.

* * *

Archie awoke to mid-morning light streaming through his small bedroom window, and the rattling of snoring from Herry's room drifting under his door. His body ached. The day before had seen the gang fighting a particularly enraged Cronus, and as a reward for their efforts, Jay (and a somewhat disapproving Hera) had allowed them a day off.

He'd planned on spending it sleeping. He'd taken more of a beating than the rest of them, save maybe Jay, and he knew that he was probably covered in bruises. Still, his watch read 11.37am, and his body seemed to be waking. He'd slept enough, it seemed.

Yawning, and wincing, he pulled himself out of bed and into a quick series of push-ups on the floor. Ignoring the agony in his shoulders, he completed the exercises and stood, stretching out his muscles more. What could he say? He was a glutton for punishment.

Pulling on clothes as he wandering out of his bedroom, down the stairs and into kitchen, he found Theresa and Jay talking lowly over a plate of triangular cut sandwiches. Theresa was sitting in Jay's lap, leaning against his stomach, and had one hand entwined with his. Archie grinned.

"So, is this an exclusive thing, or are you guys open to a third?"

Theresa's head snapped around so quickly he thought it'd fly off. "Archie!" she cried, jumping off Jay's lap quickly. The leader only shrugged and greeted him as he paced into the kitchen.

"Depends who's asking," Jay said, making an exaggerated wink.

Archie smirked again and swiped a sandwich triangle from the plate. "Where is everyone?" he asked, biting into his breakfast.

"Atlanta, Herry and Odie left about an hour ago," Jay said. "They're at the mall. I think Neil's still sleeping."

"He is," Theresa confirmed, tapping her temple and not looking at Archie. She closed her eyes in concentration. "And he's currently dreaming of…. Gucci."

Archie rolled his eyes. "Seriously?" Still, he had to hand it to the pretty boy. Even in his sleep, he was consistent.

"So, what are you gonna do with your day off?" Jay asked. "Are you heading out…?" He kept his voice level and casual, but Archie knew exactly what he was asking about.

"I guess I'm heading out now," he said. Theresa nodded firmly in agreement. "Have fun, you guys."

He was barely out of the kitchen before he heard Theresa giggling, and two pairs of footsteps bound up the stairs. Archie made a mental note to not return to the dorm for several hours, and fervently hoped Neil would stay asleep.

The walk to the mall was quick. The gods had the good sense to house them in the middle of the triangle between the three most important places in the city – the school, the park and the mall. Each was about a fifteen minute walk. Archie liked walking the streets. It was something he'd always done alone as a kid. Now he usually had a walking buddy. Atlanta.

He hadn't been sure the past couple of months (not since Herry's birthday) if he should retry asking Atlanta out. Their friendship finally seemed to be free of bickering – not that they still didn't have their moments, though. Maybe he was growing up and understood the problems of dating friends. He knew for sure that his feelings for her hadn't changed, but the more he thought about it… did she like him, too? She was impossible to understand.

Once he was outside the mall, he sent her a message on his PMR.

_Near mall. Where are you?_

And then, a few seconds later,

_A&F sportswear. See you soon?_

Archie smiled and walked through the revolving door into the mall. New Olympia Mall was an experience at it's quietest, and a full-on affair of shopping, shrieking children and colour during peak hours. It seemed that midday on a weekday wasn't one of its more crowded hours. He walked to the escalator and made his way up.

Once on the second floor, he spied her in the shop by herself and looked around for Herry and Odie, but he couldn't spot them. Shrugging to himself, Archie did his best to sneak up on her and his reward was a stifled shriek. She didn't appreciate his laughter, apparently, because when she slapped at his chest, it actually hurt a bit. He grabbed her hands to stop her and choked down his own laughter. He summoned what he hoped was an appropriately contrite expression, but she didn't seem to buy it based on her glare.

"I'm sorry, Atlanta." She continued to glare at him, but a giggle found its way out of him despite his best effort. He coughed to break his punch-drunk reaction. "I'm serious. Please forgive me." Atlanta huffed at him but stopped pulling away so he took it as a good sign and looked around again. "Where are Odie and Herry?"

"They got distracted in the comics store. I think Odie is trying to get Herry hooked on Marvel."

"Well, it's better than DC."

Atlanta rolled her eyes. "I am _so_ not having that talk."

Archie smirked. "So, are you meeting up with them later?"

She shook her head. "Nah. Comics are cool, but this place," she gestured to the sportswear around her, "is my kinda place. And anyway, I wanna go boarding later. They'll be fanboying over _Iron Man_ for hours."

"I'll come boarding with you!" Archie offered. "I mean… I've got nothing else on. We could try out the skate park. I heard it was pretty tame on weekdays."

"Yeah?" Atlanta smiled. "That'd be nice. To hang out. Not a date, though," she balks. "It's not a date, though, right?"

"Of course not," Archie agreed without a change in his expression. He'd gotten used to the not-a-date routine. It was a wall that Atlanta seemed to throw up every once in a while, especially since Pan. He wasn't sure why. Maybe she really didn't like being romantically hurt. All he knew was that he was more than accustomed to not-dating Atlanta.

And though he was used to it, it didn't mean he liked it.

* * *

Atlanta hated Valentine's Day. The way she saw it, it was a made up holiday for Hallmark, Hershey's and flower shops to cash in on. It was pointless to name one day out of the whole year as _the_ day for love. Why couldn't people love each other and exchange gifts on any other day of the year?

This is what she explained to the gang over lunch when asked if she would be attending Olympus High's dance later that evening.

"You didn't mind celebrating it before," Odie pointed out.

"Well, that one year I was charmed by a god who was actually under a spell from Cronus," she said. Archie frowned. She ignored it. "And then last year we were all under a spell and frankly I blame the love potion more than Cupid's hate arrows."

"That's not what it looked like to me," Neil commented.

"Shut up, Neil." Atlanta glared.

"We're all going to this dance, Atlanta," Theresa said. "It wouldn't be the same without you there. Not to mention that Valentine's Day is also Single's Awareness Day."

Atlanta scoffed. "Right. Single's Awareness Day on the same day that everyone decides to shove their tongues down each others throats because it's a special day. That's one way to make a single person feel good about their relationship status."

"I think that's why you hate Valentine's Day," Odie said matter-of-factly. "It's because you're bitter about being single while everyone else here has a date."

"No, Odie, that isn't why I hate Valentine's Day," she defended. "I just said why I did. And anyway, I don't think _all_ of you managed to get dates."

There were a few smug looks around the table. Atlanta glared at each of them. "What?" she asked indignantly. "_Everyone_ has a date tonight?" She made a point to not look at Archie.

"Yeah." Odie looked rather pleased with himself. "I'm going with the new girl in my Bio class. Herry's going with one of her friends." He paused for an obligatory high five with the brawn. "Neil's got a girl from his Italian class, which I didn't think was possible-"

"Hey!"

"- And Theresa and Jay are going with each other." Odie smiled fondly at the team's only couple. He was a big fan of theirs. Little did they know, they had financed a large portion of his new laptop. He and Herry had made a bet on New Year's on when the two would finally call their unresolved sexual tension and late night rendezvous an official relationship. Herry had given them to the end of the year. Needless to say, Odie had won.

Atlanta glanced over at Archie. "And you?"

"I'm going with a someone," he muttered, looking at his hands.

"Oh." Atlanta looked away. "Well, it's a good thing I'm not going, then. I'd be the… seventh wheel."

"Maybe there will be other single people at the dance," Theresa suggested brightly.

Atlanta rolled her eyes. "As if anyone would be _that_ sad."

"Maybe Odie is right," Herry said. "Maybe you are bitter and single."

"No, I'm not!" Atlanta stood up. "I'm not going to the stupid dance! I'm staying in by myself and I'm gonna watch movies!" She gathered up her things and stomped off before another word was said.

"Does she have a class or was that a dramatic exit to prove a point?" Jay asked.

"Dramatic exit to prove a point," Odie answered. "Her class isn't for twenty minutes."

Later that evening, Atlanta curled up on her bed in her comfy clothes and popped in a DVD into her laptop. She'd settled on Sweeney Todd, because it was just about as anti-Valentine's as she could get. Just as the opening strings had started, Theresa burst in.

"Sure you don't want to come?" she asked. She was wearing a rather flattering blue dress with her hair twisted into an elaborate knot, with simple, glowing makeup. "We're about to leave, so…?"

Atlanta shook her head. "I'm very sure. You guys have fun."

Theresa nodded, and left her to her movie. Atlanta sighed and settled back into the movie. She heard the gang leave, but ignored the urge to go to her window and watch them walk out and off to their stupid dance with their stupid dates with a girl that wasn't her.

After half an hour into the movie, she became disinterested. It wasn't the musical numbers or the gory murders that drew her attention away. It was the fact that she was lonely.

Sure, she said she wouldn't go, but it was only to prove a point. But there was a single, solitary dress in her wardrobe, and she vaguely knew how to apply make up.

So, forty-five minutes later, she made a quiet entrance to the dance. Held in the gym, Olympus High's seemingly endless budget had no limits when it came to cheesy Valentine's Day decorations. Piles of fake flowers littered the edges of the room. She had to duck under a fringe of dangling paper hearts just to get in. The lighting was flamboyantly pink, pulsating from various spotlights strung up around the room. It was no wonder, though. Neil was on the school's social committee.

She spotted Odie and his date hovering around a table and made her way over.

"Hi," she said, feeling awkward.

"Atlanta!" Odie grinned. "You changed your mind!"

"I felt alone," she said. "And even though I hate this stupid holiday, I might as well spend it with friends. Is everyone else on the dance floor?"

Odie's date gestured over to the dance floor. "Those two have been dancing up a storm." Atlanta followed her eyes and spotted Jay twirling Theresa around. They both looked exhilarated. Atlanta hadn't initially taken on the idea of them dating, because she knew Jay was just as likely to break up with Theresa for her own safety as he was to propose to her. But it'd been a month, and Jay had finally started to relax more often, and Theresa's happiness was obviously linked to her improvement with Persephone. So Atlanta had stopped worrying.

"Too bad Neil thinks it's a competition," Odie commented, pointing to another part of the dance floor.

Neil and his date (_Cassie? Clara? Carmen?_ Atlanta couldn't remember the girl's name) were keeping pace with Jay and Theresa. Well, until they bumped into a slower moving couple, and begun a domino of fallen couples on the dance floor. Atlanta watched as Herry and his brunette date fell, and couldn't help but chuckle.

"Where's Arch?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady and uninterested.

"He got into a fight with his date a few minutes ago," Odie explained, "and we haven't seen him since she stormed off."

"Oh," was all Atlanta could say.

The DJ switched on his mic and announced for all the couples to get on the dance floor for a slow dance. Odie and his date gave Atlanta a look of sympathy as they made their way to the dance floor. She glanced down, feeling even more out of place and awkward.

"May I cut in?"

She turned around to see Archie standing behind her, tie askew and a little embarrassed. She smiled at him. "You know, you're only supposed to say that when I've actually got a date to cut me off from. And if we're dancing. Which we're not."

"I know." Archie sighed. "I, uh… my date is also not here to cut me off from… And I thought you weren't coming to the dance?"

"I changed my mind," she said. "About the dance. I still hate Valentine's Day. But I can hate it _and_ be hanging out with my friends. Right?"

"Right." Archie grinned. "Do you, uh… wanna dance?"

Atlanta blinked. "With me?"

"Yeah?"

"I dunno, Arch… I don't dance."

"So why'd you come?" he asked, smirking. She rolled her eyes. "Fine," he said, "I'll stop asking questions. As long as you dance with me right now so we're both not sad singles for the slow dance."

He held out his hand. She took it in her own, and smiled brightly up at him as he led her to the dance floor. Slowly, she placed her arms around him, and folded herself into the warm embrace that was Archie. They swayed to the slow tempo, tripping occasionally. Neither of them were particularly good dancers.

"This is nice," she said, after a while.

"Yeah." Archie paused. "It's not a date, though, right?"

"… It's not a date," she agreed thoughtfully. "It's just… two, single friends helping each other out on Single's Awareness Day."

* * *

After the dance, they walk home together.

She kissed him on the stairs leading up to the dorm.

He kissed her back, soft and unsteady on the lips, because she was Atlanta, she was beautiful, and she was his.

He could taste the love on her breath.

Later, they decide to call Valentine's Day their first date.

It was as good a day as any.


End file.
